The company hasn't offered an explanation for the decision, although the effectiveness of the service in Japan is hampered by the lack of support by games publishers. At its launch, big names like Capcom, Konami, Namco and Square Enix were all notably missing from the lineup.

There is no word on what will happen in the UK and Europe, though with the news that the UMD Passport isn't going to the US, we suspect that it won't make it out of Japan at all.

Two pockets, two PlayStations

The news means that PSP owners with huge UMD collections will have to keep hold of their old console to play old favourites.

The decision rewards those who have opted to buy game downloads instead of physical media (where possible) as those downloads will be playable on the PS Vita.